The first soul ring that Tianmeng granted Zhou Sichen's Martial Soul came with four soul skills. Two of them were exactly the same as in the original story when Huo Yuhao received them—Spiritual Detection and Spiritual Sharing. Zhou Sichen's Martial Soul was body-based with a strong spiritual emphasis, so naturally, his spiritual power was quite potent.
The other two soul skills, however, weren't exactly Spiritual Disturbance and Spiritual Shock as they were in the original. That was because Zhou Sichen's Martial Soul differed slightly from the Body Sect's founder Du Busi's Body Martial Soul.
Zhou Sichen's Martial Soul also included his soul—the literal essence of his being. This was something nebulous and difficult to explain. In the Douluo Dalu world, there were seemingly no Soul Masters whose Martial Soul was their own soul.
Perhaps Ghost Douluo Gui Mei of the Spirit Hall from ten thousand years ago had something similar, but even that wasn't quite the same.
Zhou Sichen's soul power was incredibly unique. It had become part of his Martial Soul, allowing him to exert an extraordinary level of control over his own body—far beyond what ordinary people could achieve.
As a result, once Tianmeng became the first soul ring of his Martial Soul, the remaining two soul skills evolved to match Zhou Sichen's uniqueness.
After all, soul skills are a fusion of the soul beast's abilities and the characteristics of the user's Martial Soul. It was only natural for some changes to occur compared to the original.
Once Spiritual Detection was activated, Zhou Sichen smoothly began inscribing the core soul tool array onto the Remnant Essence.
Since this Remnant Essence was already a top-tier material, and Zhou Sichen didn't currently possess any other materials of comparable quality, he decided not to combine it with anything else.
Adding lesser materials wouldn't enhance the Remnant Essence—in fact, it might even reduce its original grade and quality.
He could always upgrade it later once he found better materials. There was no need to rush.
Inscribing a core soul tool array required immense concentration. This was a peak Rank 4 core array, and the material—Tianmeng's Remnant Essence—was of the highest grade. Even for Zhou Sichen, it was a task that demanded extreme care.
One small mistake, and this treasure could be reduced to worthless scrap.
The night passed in the blink of an eye. Even with his spiritual "cheats," Zhou Sichen only managed to complete about one-fifth of the inscription. The Remnant Essence had a large surface area, and he also needed to shape it to fit his body. There was still a lot of work to do.
Had he not completed all the prep work beforehand, it would've taken him even longer.
Sensing some mental fatigue, Zhou Sichen stopped working, packed everything into his soul tool storage device, and left the chamber.
Out in the courtyard, he inhaled the sweet scent of the sunflowers. His tired spirit seemed to ease a little.
After changing into his training clothes, he performed a set of martial arts movements and did some light exercises to make himself feel less exhausted.
Duogu Xianmeng's seclusion would likely last about a month. So this morning, no one came to deliver breakfast to Zhou Sichen, and he simply ordered something casual to eat.
After breakfast, he meditated for another two hours. By the time his mind was fully refreshed, it was already noon.
Thinking it over, Zhou Sichen decided to take a walk and head to the cafeteria for lunch. Balancing work and rest was the most efficient method, after all. He wasn't one to rush things.
Just as he changed into his uniform and opened the villa door without much enthusiasm, he saw Ma Xiaotao standing outside with a takeout box in her hand, about to knock.
Zhou Sichen was momentarily stunned and couldn't help asking, "Senior Ma, what's this?"
Since their honest conversation the day before, Ma Xiaotao had stopped acting so reserved. She lifted the box and said casually:
"I was going to ask you to spar this morning, but you didn't answer the door. I figured you were cultivating."
"When it hit noon and you still hadn't come out, I thought I'd bring you lunch."
She wasn't lying. Ma Xiaotao had indeed come by earlier to look for Zhou Sichen. After her loss to him—when she hadn't been at full strength—she was itching for a rematch. Even if she still couldn't win, she wanted to go all-out and show Zhou Sichen what she was really capable of.
Unfortunately, Zhou Sichen hadn't answered because he'd gone into the secret chamber to cultivate and recover.
When she finally saw him outside from the second floor of her villa, she hurried over, not wanting him to disappear again.
As for the lunch... well, she hadn't seen Duogu Xianmeng today and had secretly wondered, That girl stuck to Zhou Sichen for a few days and gave up already?
Since he hadn't eaten, bringing him food felt like the natural thing to do.
Of course, she wasn't trying to curry favor with him or anything—it was just that she planned to fight him, and he couldn't be doing that on an empty stomach...
Looking at Ma Xiaotao standing there, Zhou Sichen couldn't help but smile. He invited her into the courtyard, and the two of them sat down at the stone table.
Ma Xiaotao waved it off. "You agreed to help me out, didn't you? Consider this a thank-you."
The two of them ate together casually. Ma Xiaotao's eating habits were quite refined—much like Duogu Xianmeng's. She took small bites with her cherry-like lips and chewed slowly, elegantly.
While eating, she asked, "You got anything to do this afternoon? Since Duogu Xianmeng isn't around, want me to show you around the Inner Court?"
Zhou Sichen shook his head gently. "I've already gotten familiar with the Inner Court. No need to trouble you."
Ma Xiaotao paused slightly, her hand holding the chopsticks stilling for a moment. For some reason, she felt a little annoyed.
So Duogu Xianmeng is allowed to guide him, but I'm not?
Still, she didn't show her feelings and simply said, "Is that so? Then I assume you're free this afternoon? I want a rematch. I wasn't at full strength last time. Now I'll show you what the Flame Demon Ma Xiaotao is really capable of!"
She sounded rather proud as she said this.
She knew perfectly well she wasn't a match for him, yet she couldn't resist asking for another fight.
Maybe even she didn't realize—she just wanted to spend more time with Zhou Sichen.
Zhou Sichen thought about it and replied helplessly, "I have to go see Vice Dean Qian Duoduo this afternoon. I'll probably be busy for the next few days. But I'll be at the Soul Dueling Arena this weekend."
Ma Xiaotao let out a quiet "Oh," then resumed eating in silence. "Huh. Didn't expect you to be this busy already, and you just entered the Inner Court."
She couldn't schedule a spar, and for some reason, she felt a twinge of disappointment. She didn't even know what she was saying anymore—she just said whatever popped into her mind.
Zhou Sichen explained, "It's not too bad. Just keeping myself productive."
They continued chatting while finishing their lunch. Afterward, Ma Xiaotao left without lingering.
Once she was gone, Zhou Sichen headed straight to find Qian Duoduo.
Last night, while inscribing the core soul tool array, he had a sudden thought: he might not have a Ranking Knife, but Qian Duoduo did.
Borrowing it shouldn't be a big deal, right? After all, Dean Qian had said himself—if he ever needed anything, he should just come find him.
Leaving the Inner Court, Zhou Sichen went directly to Qian Duoduo's office. As the Vice Dean of the Soul Tool Department, he was usually very busy.
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